


Can I have this Dance?

by Akiko_Natsuko



Series: Gratsu [58]
Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Dancing, Established Relationship, Fluff, Love, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-24
Updated: 2019-08-24
Packaged: 2020-09-25 21:40:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,098
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20378548
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Akiko_Natsuko/pseuds/Akiko_Natsuko
Summary: Natsu wants to dance.His heart and stomach were doing a complicated dance of their own, both at the thought that Natsu wanted to dance, and at the idea of dancing with him. And the fact that the Dragon-slayer hadn’t come to pester him about it, and he worried at his bottom lip as he glanced back towards Natsu. He knew that Natsu would never ask him because he had never hesitated to point out how much he hated dancing, at least before they had become an item.





	Can I have this Dance?

Gray knew that he wasn’t the only one who was somewhat overwhelmed by the fact that they were standing in the Palace, surrounded by such splendour and overt wealth that he was almost afraid to touch anything. It certainly didn’t help that he was stood there wearing borrowed finery that didn’t fit quite right, and that he kept having to consciously remind himself not to take off, reasonably sure the Palace was not the best place to be stripping off. Tugging at his collar again, he glanced around, still not quite able to reconcile the sight of Fairy Tail and their chaos being allowed within these four walls, especially after Natsu’s shenanigans earlier that evening. His lips turning up into a grin at the memory. He had a feeling that Natsu might regret his actions later, as Erza had already muttered something about having a conversation with him, mercifully put on hold due to their surroundings, but it had been such a purely Natsu moment that Gray had to smile.

However, that had also reminded him that he hadn’t seen the Dragon-slayer since he had been hauled off to change, and his grin faded a little bit, wondering just how much mischief Natsu had managed to get up to in the interim.

“He’s over there.” He jumped, having missed Lucy wandering across to join them and he glanced at her. Of all of them she seemed the most at home here, and not for the first time he wondered if she missed her old life. It didn’t seem like it most of the time, but there was something sad about her smile as she glanced around. It wasn’t the time to ask though, and he didn’t want to drag up any bad memories on a night that was for celebration, and instead, he followed the direction she had pointed in.

His expression softened as he caught a glimpse of Natsu peering into the ballroom from one of the balconies overlooking the palace gardens, and for a moment he thought that the Dragon-slayer was planning further mischief and he straightened with the intention of stopping him before the King’s patience did wear out. Then he realised that Natsu wasn’t wearing the grin that usually heralded chaos. Instead, he was watching the couples that had taken to the dancefloor as soon as the music had started up after the speeches, an expression that could only be described as wistful on his face. _He wants to dance. _Now that he thought about, Natsu had always been in the centre of parties, both fighting and dancing, loving the energy and the tactile nature of it, and his heart twisted in his chest, as he saw Natsu sigh and glance away, only for his eyes to stray back to the dancing couples. “Gray,” Lucy murmured, and he glanced at her, sighing as he saw her raised eyebrow.

“I know.”

_Natsu wants to dance._

His heart and stomach were doing a complicated dance of their own, both at the thought that Natsu wanted to dance, and at the idea of dancing with him. And the fact that the Dragon-slayer hadn’t come to pester him about it, and he worried at his bottom lip as he glanced back towards Natsu. He knew that Natsu would never ask him because he had never hesitated to point out how much he hated dancing, at least before they had become an item. It was a reminder of how much attention the Dragon-slayer had paid to him, long before Gray had even started to notice what was building between them. He shook his head, once again wondering what he had done to deserve that kind of attention, and how they had got to this point when he could still be caught off guard by the simplest thing.

Although, maybe the fact that the thought of dancing with Natsu wasn’t as unpleasant as he had expected it to be. In fact, the idea of holding him that close and seeing Natsu’s smile – not the mischievous, life-loving grin that Natsu showed the world, but the softer smile that was all his, had his stomach flip-flopping again. “Go,” Lucy ordered, pushing him forward as she all but snatched his drink out of his hand, and with no real reason to argue he obeyed, carefully skirting the edge of the dancefloor and ignoring a couple of offers to dance, his eyes locked on Natsu who hadn’t yet noticed his approach.

That gave him the chance to admire the figure his boyfriend cut in formal clothes, immediately making a note to try and find more situations to force Natsu into a suit because even with the pink hair that he had teased him about so much when they were so younger, he was handsome. He had also just noticed Gray approaching, straightening with a smile and one last longing glance at the dancefloor, before the wistfulness was banished as he stepped forward to greet Gray.

Gray didn’t give him a chance to change the subject, closing the distance between them and shepherding Natsu back out onto the balcony, reaching out to tug the curtain shut behind them. He might not find the idea of dancing as repulsive as it had been in the past, it didn’t mean that he was ready to do it in front of an audience just yet.

“Gray, what are…?”

“Can I have this dance?” He asked cutting off Natsu’s startled questions, holding out his hand in invitation and grinning slightly at the gobsmacked expression that spread across the Dragon-slayer’s face as the question registered, olive eyes darting down to the offered hand and then back up. There was longing in his eyes, but he was hesitating, and Gray’s smile softened, as he stepped closer. “Just out here, and just the two of us.” Natsu blinked, glancing up at the curtain now sheltering them from the rest of the world, a slow smile spreading across his lips. He tried to speak, but the words wouldn’t come, and after a moment he nodded and reached out, almost shy as he took the Ice Mage’s hand, allowing Gray to pull him closer.

Gray didn’t have a clue what he was doing, not really, but Natsu seemed content to let him lead him, the two of them swaying slightly as the Dragon-slayer rested his head against Gray’s chest. The smile that had motivated Gray to do this, growing as he heard Gray’s heart pounding beneath his ear as he glanced up and met Gray’s hopeful gaze, leaning up to kiss him.

“Thank you.”


End file.
